Premium
Cervical varicosities and placenta praevia
Author(s) -
O'Brien Brooke,
Smoleneic John
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of obstetrics and gynaecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.734
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1479-828X
pISSN - 0004-8666
DOI - 10.1111/ajo.12127
Subject(s) - medicine , obstetrics , placenta , pregnancy , caesarean section , gynecology , retained placenta , fetus , biology , genetics
Cervical varicosities ( CV s) have been reported infrequently in pregnancy and have been associated with significant antepartum and postpartum haemorrhage. The most common association with CV s in pregnancy in the literature is placenta praevia. Aims To further investigate the association between placenta praevia and CV s. Methods A retrospective audit of all cases of placenta praevia that had an ultrasound in the F eto‐ M aternal U nit at L iverpool H ospital over the period J anuary 2001 to J anuary 2012. Patient outcomes were obtained from the hospital paper and electronic medical records, including mode of delivery and blood loss. Results Eighty‐four cases of placenta praevia were identified, and 78 had saved images that were reviewed. 51 of these 78 cases had transvaginal ultrasound ( TVUS ) images, which identified nine further cases of cervical varicosities. All cases of CV s were complicated by APH and delivered by caesarean section. There was no significant difference in the blood loss at delivery between the placenta praevia with CV s and those without (925 vs 870 mLs P = 0.3877). Conclusions Cervical varicosities are not as rare as the literature would suggest. The clinical relevance of the additional finding of CV on TVUS in cases of placenta praevia is questionable.